Renfrew club wins President's Memorial

The Renfrew Curling Club was victorious Sunday winning the President’s Memorial Bonspiel at the Pembroke Curling Club.

The team of skip Rob Warren, Andy Humphries, Jim Berg and Don Rouble beat Harv Robertson’s Pembroke squad 7-3 in the ‘A’ Division final. Pembroke’s Emile Robert took the ‘B’ Division, while Renfrew’s Dave Eady won the ‘C’ Division.

"We got lucky a couple of times," remarked Warren noting his players set him up well to take the win. "We had a good seventh end. It was really tight and then stole three in the seventh. He came up a little in his draw so in the eighth we just had to pull away."

This was the third year that the club’s senior men’s division held the memorial bonspiel in honour of a deceased past-president. There were 12 teams from Pembroke, Killaloe, Deep River, Renfrew and Cobden.

This year, the two-day bonspiel paid tribute to the late Denny Craig. He was a director and vice-president on the club’s first executive from 1967 to 1970, which also included president Bill Holden and directors Bill McIntosh, Ted Rowe and Ruth Grant. The newly re-established club was challenged early on when a fire destroyed their rink during a men’s spring bonspiel.

The executive eventually selected the current Herbert Street location. Craig was president from 1983 to 1984. He was playing on sheet four when he collapsed suddenly in October, 2001 and never recovered. Inclement weather prevented members of the Craig family from attending to present the trophy.

"He loved this sport and he was always here," said Robert, who played with Craig.

Organizers plan to hold the next President’s Memorial Bonspiel in October, 2013 with the aim of attracting 16 teams.